Salary guide › New York › General Building Contractor
General Building Contractor salary in New York (2025)
Most general building contractors in New York earn $52.35 to $94.72 an hour.
The typical general building contractor salary in New York is $74.69 an hour, or $155,360 a year. That is 35% more than the national typical pay of $55.28. About 10,280 people do this work in New York. BLS has no general contractor occupation. Construction Managers is the closest official category, so treat it as a related figure.
Pay by job level
| Job | Hourly | Yearly | Where the number comes from |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apprentice | $41.47 | $86,250 | Estimate: the lowest 10% of pay in this trade (BLS 10th percentile). BLS has no apprentice category. Apprentices often start near helper pay, then step up each year toward journeyman pay. Low |
| Journeyman | $74.69 | $155,360 | Typical pay in the trade. BLS does not split pay by license level. Medium |
| Foreman | $46.01 | $95,700 | BLS pay for construction supervisors across all trades. Medium |
| Superintendent | $74.69 | $155,360 | BLS pay for construction managers, the closest official category. Medium |
| Project Manager | $74.69 | $155,360 | BLS pay for construction managers, the closest official category. Medium |
| Estimator | $38.67 | $80,430 | BLS pay for cost estimators in all industries. Medium |
| Owner Operator | Depends on the business | There is no wage data for owners. They earn from business profit, not a wage. None | |
High exact government figure Medium closest government category Low estimate, method shown None no data
Best paying areas for general building contractors in New York
| Area | Typical hourly | Typical yearly |
|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $75.96 | $158,000 |
| Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY | $73.13 | $152,100 |
| Rochester, NY | $64.87 | $134,940 |
| Syracuse, NY | $63.83 | $132,760 |
| Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY | $62.97 | $130,980 |
Typical means the median: half earn more, half earn less. Only areas where the government publishes a figure are listed.
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See exam prepUnion and prevailing wage pay for general building contractors in New York
The federal wage list for New York has no separate classification for general building contractors, so there is no official union or prevailing rate to show. Ask the local union in your area for its wage sheet. Federal rates by county are on SAM.gov.
How to earn more
- Get licensed. A license lets you bid work in your own name. See exam prep.
- Run your own company. Many states also require a business and law exam. Business exam prep.
Common questions
How much does a general building contractor make in New York?
Typical pay is $74.69 an hour, or $155,360 a year, based on government data for May 2025. Most earn between $52.35 and $94.72 an hour. That includes union and non union workers.
What is the starting pay for a general building contractor apprentice in New York?
Expect about $41.47 an hour to start. That is the lowest 10% of pay in the trade, an estimate. Apprentice pay then rises each year. The local union or the New York apprenticeship agency publishes the exact steps.
Do union general building contractors make more in New York?
We have no official union rate for this trade in New York. Government pay figures mix union and non union workers, so they cannot answer this alone. Ask the local union for its wage sheet and compare wages plus benefits.
What is the prevailing wage for general building contractor in New York?
The federal wage list has no separate classification for this trade in New York. Prevailing wage is the minimum on covered public jobs and changes by county. Check SAM.gov for your county, and whether New York has its own prevailing wage law.
What is the highest paying city for general building contractors in New York?
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ pays the most, with typical pay of $75.96 an hour, based on government data for May 2025. Smaller areas may be missing because the government does not publish a figure for them.
Ready to get licensed in New York? Start your general building contractor exam prep with Contractor Pathway.
See exam prepSee the full numbers and sources
General Building Contractor salary in New York: full pay range
| Percentile | Hourly | Annual | Source | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $41.47 | $86,250 | BLS OEWS, May 2025 | Medium |
| 25th percentile | $52.35 | $108,890 | BLS OEWS, May 2025 | Medium |
| Median | $74.69 | $155,360 | BLS OEWS, May 2025 | Medium |
| 75th percentile | $94.72 | $197,010 | BLS OEWS, May 2025 | Medium |
| 90th percentile | $117.59 | $244,590 | BLS OEWS, May 2025 | Medium |
A percentile shows where pay falls: the 10th percentile means 10% earn less. BLS publishes hourly and yearly figures; yearly assumes 2,080 paid hours (40 hours times 52 weeks). $115.00+ means BLS reports it only as at least that amount.
What affects general building contractor pay in New York
- Metro area. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ pays a median of $75.96 an hour, 2% above the New York median.
- Experience and skill. In New York, the top 10% earn at least $117.59 an hour, while the bottom 10% earn $41.47 or less. That gap of $76.12 an hour reflects experience, specialty and responsibility.
- State market. The New York median is 35% above the national median of $55.28 for Construction Managers.
- Overtime. BLS figures are straight time pay. Overtime, shift pay and bonuses are not included, so total earnings can be higher.
- Union status and public work. Union contracts and prevailing wage jobs set their own rates. Those are separate from the market figures above.
- License classification. A contractor license lets you bid and run your own jobs instead of earning a wage.
Comparing union, prevailing and market pay
These are not directly comparable. A union total package includes benefits, a prevailing wage applies only to covered public jobs, and the BLS market wage is straight time pay for everyone in the trade.
Methodology
Market figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, state and metro tables, May 2025. We never average across sources or occupations. Full methodology.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, state, metro and national tables. bls.gov/oes/tables.htm
- U.S. Department of Labor wage determination NY20260003 (Davis-Bacon, building), Kings, revision 6. sam.gov
- U.S. Department of Labor, state prevailing wage laws. dol.gov/agencies/whd/state/prevailing-wages
Salary information on Contractor Pathway is an estimate for educational purposes only. Figures come from public sources such as the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, state prevailing wage determinations, federal wage determinations, and published union wage sheets. Actual pay depends on your employer, experience, local market, license classification, overtime, benefits, and the date of the data. Market wage data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics includes both union and non union workers. Union, prevailing wage, and market figures come from different sources and are not directly comparable. Some positions do not have official wage data, and those figures are marked as estimates with the method shown. This tool does not guarantee any wage, job offer, or income. Always confirm current rates with your local union, your state labor agency, or a prospective employer before making career or business decisions. Contractor Pathway is not responsible for decisions made based on these estimates.